Dennis Kochmann (ETH Zürich)

Architected Materials

Architected materials (often referred to as mechanical metamaterials) have gained tremendous attention over the past decade. Across engineering disciplines, the modeling, design, fabrication, and characterization of such cellular solids, which derive their macroscopic properties from small-scale structural architecture, has resulted in a myriad of materials systems with as-designed, optimized mechanical properties – from high stiffness, strength, and toughness to energy absorption and mechanical wave guidance all the way to smart and reconfigurable structures. The dream has been to change our approach to selecting materials for engineering applications: away from property look-up tables for available materials, towards the creation of novel architected materials with controllable or extreme properties and functionality. Focusing on mechanical properties, we will discuss what architected materials can achieve as well as limitations and challenges. Specifically, we will highlight recent examples of modeling and reverse-engineering as well as fabricating and testing architected materials with, among others, controllable stiffness and anisotropy, toughness, wave motion, and shape morphing.